Horsin' Around in Kentucky
The Horse Capital of the World
I previously posted about part 1 of this road trip here. But to bring you up to speed, back in the summer of 2022, while everyone was planning their beach and mountain vacations, we were planning a road trip to Kentucky.
Our first stop was St. Louis, and then we made out way to Louisville. Unfortunately, we had a late start getting to Louisville because of the game delay. We rolled into town right about bedtime, exhausted from the day’s drive and looking forward to climbing into the inviting hotel beds. I think I’ve mentioned before, but I can be pretty selective when it comes to where I stay on a trip. Location is huge, and this one was right in the heart of downtown Louisville. It’s the Grady Hotel and it is wonderful. Beautifully designed. And those ceilings!
The bathrooms were done so well too, and I always love a hotel that has a designated “makeup” rag. They have a restaurant in the basement, where we ate a delicious buffet breakfast before heading out for the day. So if you’re heading to the Derby this year, 10/10 recommend the Grady.
We were not there for the Derby, but we did want to see Churchill Downs. They had a great hands on museum that the kids loved. And I got goosebumps from the “pregame” video you watch before proceeding on the tour. One day I hope we can make it to a race there.
There’s also a well known baseball bat maker in town who offers tours as well and I highly recommend it. You can even hold the bats of some of the greatest players in the league. The tour itself was so informative, walking you step by step thru the process of how the bats are made. This tour was definitely not a swing and a miss.
Downtown Louisville was so charming, I loved the architecture of the old buildings. I wish we had more time to explore the area, but we were heading to Lexington.
You can’t help but notice the rolling hills of Kentucky between Louisville and Lexington. It looked like everyone lived on acres and acres of horse farms. Such a beautiful part of the country.
In Lexington, we stayed at The Campbell House. We didn’t have any complaints, they may not have had a separate makeup towel? I loved their front patio area. And they had a restaurant on site which offered a good buffet for breakfast.
We were in Lexington to visit the Kentucky Horse Park. What a great experience for the horse lover. We watched multiple horse shows, petted the horses, fed an old Derby winner carrots, went on a horse drawn carriage ride, and even saw a bit of an equestrian competition. They offer trail rides for kids over 7, so we had to opt for the pony rides this time. I highly recommend this place, and it’s not Disney crowded, there was plenty of room to breathe.
When we left there, we headed up to the Ark Encounter. First things first, my kids were terrified entering the ark with the noises and the dark lighting. With kids, we also did not have time to read much of the info. We were in and out of the Ark pretty quickly. But, my kids did love the zoo and, of course, the playground.
Downtown Lexington was also very charming. We explored it on foot, and ate breakfast at Zim’s Cafe in the old Court House building. The girls favorite part was finding all of these horse statues around town.
On our way to the Mammoth Cave National Park, we stopped at Lincoln’s boyhood cabin and his Birthplace. His birthplace is a MUST! The monument is worthy of DC. What a beautiful site. The cabin itself is not original, but the monument is spectacular.
When we got to Mammoth Caves, it was pouring (Kentucky) rain. We had booked the Frozen Niagara Tour in advance, making sure to choose one of the easiest options for kids. There is so much to explore there, but our kid were 3 and 6 at that time. It was really interesting to see the inside of the cave. The girls did great on the steep stairs and we checked another National Park off our list.
Kentucky is a gorgeous state, the rolling hills reminded me of the English countryside. I know my husband would have loved to have seen the Corvette museum, but we simply ran out of time. We hope to go back one day to, explore more, watch a race, and enjoy a trail ride when the kids are old enough. There are so many other things I’d like to see under the blue moon of Kentucky.
